The Shadow King's Return
by Violet Paerce
Summary: Seven thousand years ago, both the Light and the Twilight Realms were nearly destroyed by an insane King before he was just barely sealed away. Now, the seal is dying and the only link between the two realms is destroyed. Neither Kingdom has even the slightest chance of surviving on their own.
1. The Journey and The War

"I'm telling you Vi, you're making a mistake. It's one thing to steal from Castle Town, but the castle itself? Come on. Don't tell me you have that big of a death wish." He was desperate, trying to talk her out of it. She was laughing, very entertained by what he was saying.

"Death wish? And just who's going to kill me? The guards that all but collapsed when Zant attacked?"

"No. The Elite Guard. You know, the one's that Link trained in his own skills before forging them armor and weapons from those dark knights?" Violet paused as she turned to look at Alex.

"Oh...those...those guards. They're not at the castle. They set off towards The Great Waste yesterday. Queen Zelda sent them and a sorceress to investigate some ancient ruins located within them. She wants them to test a ritual that's supposed to make it livable again. Or that's what my informant said anyway."

"What he said? What if he's wrong? What if they aren't in the waste." Alex took a step towards her, glancing towards the entrance to the alleyway as he spoke, still trying to talk her out of this.

"_She_ is right. The only thing I doubt that she knew for sure is the reason. Zelda was given the Gift of Wisdom by Nayru. She knows the Great Waste can never be restored." Violet had nothing left to say at the point, making sure the Shadow Gauntlets were pulled on nice and tight. "Besides. With these on, I can't get caught." She made a fist and a purple aura started to surround the gauntlet before she vanished, reappearing atop the building at the alley's end as she winked at Alex, disappearing from sight.

Alex sighed in exasperation as she did, closing his eyes. "...Stubborn fool."

**Zelda's Private Chambers**

Zelda's chambers were made up of three chambers in themselves, two of which could only be accessed through the main room. They weren't originally, but after the destruction of her castle she had been forced to move to a different area. Over time she had the doors to the other rooms sealed off and made it into her private section of the castle. When the castle was finally finished with the reconstruction, she had already gotten readjusted to her new chambers. She decided to just stay where she was now.

Two of the rooms were neatly arranged the way a Queen's room should be...the last room, which she was in now, was a complete mess. Books and scrolls dating back to the earliest centuries of Hyrule Kingdom were scattered across the room, some of the being in mint condition whilst some were close to falling apart. Normally she would've made sure they were better taken care of...but right about now, she didn't have a care.

She was looking for a spell or a ritual or anything that would reconstruct the Twilight Mirror. It was by complete accident that she discovered the scroll speaking of the seal, and the fact that it was going to break any day now...both Midna's Kingdom and Zelda's own Kingdom needed each other to have any chance to stand up against the evil that had nearly destroyed both Kingdoms seven thousand years ago. If either kingdom was destroyed, the other would inevitably fall as well. Separated, they had no chance at survival. Together they had a small chance, but a chance none the less.

Zelda sighed as she finished another book, finding yet another legend hinting at the mirror and the Twilight Realm, yet having no solid information. The closest she'd come to it was a spell that allowed for the user to contact another person no matter the distance between them...as long as they were in the same Realm. It didn't work in between the Light and Twilight Realms. She quickly performed the spell that allowed her to do it, feeling her mana stirring as she did. "_Link. I haven't found anything new, besides a legend referring to a collection of items known as the 'Shadow Artefacts'. How are things with you? Have you reached the grotto yet?"_

_"We're there. We haven't found anything useful yet though. The majority of everything that would've been useful seems to have been ruined in the fire that destroyed the sanctuary...these Shadow Artefacts though, what do you know about them?" _She shook her head as he said that, shifting through various scrolls and books before she found the one she was looking forward, reading the legend aloud, layering her voice in the spell's magic.

**_"...bathed in darkness, before they were...Light. The Mask, with powers of illusion and trickery, given to his youngest son as... The Shroud, with powers of agility and strength, given...youngest son as...of training. The Gauntlets, with...given to his middle son as a sign of age. The Sword...with limitless power given to his eldest son as a sign of experience. The Mirror, given to his daughter as a sign of his love and care. And The Crown..."_**The legend didn't end there, but it was all they had. The rest had been lost in time, stolen or destroyed by looters. That was also the reason there were various gaps throughout the legend. They didn't exactly have much to work with._"That's the Legend of the Shadows Artefacts...I hope you find something. That seal could crack any moment, and we'd be up against an enemy we have no chance to defeat."_

Zelda sighed as she sealed the scroll once more, looking at the mess on her desk even as she stood up and walked over to the mirror at the end of her room, examining it silently. "...Midna...whatever problems you have to deal with over there...I...please be safe." She blamed herself for this. Anything that happened because their kingdoms were separated was her fault. Zelda had known what she had intended to do. She could've spoken up. Could've told Link...but she didn't. She kept silent. And now...her entire kingdom was going to pay the price for her mistakes. _"Yea. Me too. Look, I gotta go. The sorceress needs me for something. I'll contact you if we find anything."_

* * *

Midna had plenty of problems of her own to deal with, and she had no idea of the seal that was getting closer and closer to breaking with every passing day. Right now, she had a war to take care of. When she returned she expected everyone to accept her rule, and for their to finally be peace over her Realm. And for a while...there was. But it didn't last long before one of the members of her council rallied a claim for the throne and demanded she step down. She had already had her throne stolen once. She had no intentions of having it done again.

She had responded by exiling him, and he had left...and his supporters had followed him. He had raised up an army, and for the past three months she'd been fighting this war. When it came down to it, she could win in one battle. And he knew it. Every time he attacked, he would keep up the attack until his scouts reported the arrival of her, and then he would retreat. He had a small chance against her ancestor's power...but combined with the Fused Shadows? The moment they met in the field of battle, Midna would win the war. It was a simple fact, and both of them knew it. Right about now, she was drawing him into a trap.

She had very publicly left the capitol, leaving it unguarded and basically completely defenseless. Although she doubted he wouldn't be prepared for it to be a trap...he had no choice. If he didn't make a strong offensive step in the war, he would start losing his support. He had no choice but to attack the city, regardless of the risks. "...Tell me Ariana. Is it wrong of me, doing what I am?" Her voice was soft as she spoke, turning to look back at her most trusted friend.

"No. You have no choice, and no one will get hurt. You made sure to evacuate all the children and the elderly. The city will be undamaged and the citizens will be safe. You're making the right choice here. The alternative is drawing out this stupid war when we have much more concerning issues to take care of." Midna considered that before she spoke again.

"And what would you say is our most pressing issue?" She was curious as to her friend's opinions.

"Repairing the Mirror. I know you broke it so that nothing like what Zant did can happen ever again, but we need to be able to contact the Light Realm. We need them. Our society could benefit from their knowledge, and their society could benefit from our knowledge. We need to fix the Mirror Midna...please." Ariana looked desperate, trying to convince her friend that she was correct.

"...You're right. I know you're right. We'll work on fixing the Mirror...on getting back to the Light Realm...after we've finished the war." Midna turned away and stared down the side of the mountain, silently examining her town and waiting as she thought about what else she'd left behind in the Light Realm. _'Back to the Light Realm...and back to Link..."_


	2. The Thief and The Sword

Violet caught herself as she gently stood up, glancing down to the ground below. She was a top one of the few buildings that connected directly with the castle. Rumor had it, that before the Twilight Invasion it lead directly into the Queen's own chambers. But the majority of the castle had been redesigned, and the layout wasn't the same as it had been before. Now it probably just lead into a storage room, designed to hold excess weapons or emergency supplies. Regardless, it was the best and easiest way for someone like her to get in unnoticed.

She made sure to flex her fingers inside of the gauntlet, a purple aura surrounding it and her. It was best to be prepared, and getting caught her was not an option. It would lead to a life imprisoned at best, and execution at worst. She couldn't afford either of those, and that was something she kept in mind as she pushed open the window, slipping into the castle and lightly catching herself as she fell to the ground. Yet all the same, she didn't make the slightest noise.

That was thanks to a little spell she had discovered and then re-purposed for her own uses. Originally it was designed to boost the strength and speed of the target, without burning more than the bare minimum of mana. She had taken the basic principles and used them to redesign the spell in such a way that instead of making her stronger and faster, it made her stealthier and faster. It was very helpful in her line of work. And while many might see it as a crime, she didn't.

**Castle Library**

Zelda shivered as she felt a cold breeze, glancing upwards as she heard the slightest sound, almost like a whisper. _The ward... _After the invasion, she'd realized just how easy it was for one to break into her castle. Link had explained how it had taken him no longer than a few moments to find a way inside, even with it filled with the Twilight Beasts. So she had taken it upon herself to reinforce the castle, using several spells to make it harder to break into...harder and more dangerous.

The first defense was a ward, designed to make it so that if someone entered the castle without using one of the main gates, the other spells would activate and she would be alerted. The other spells were much more deadly, even going so far as to animate many of the stone statues and suits of armor scattered throughout her castle. They would then hunt down and capture the intruder alive if at all possible, before finally resorting to execution if they failed to catch whoever the intruder was.

And she had told no one but Link about this either, with strict instructions not to tell anyone else. There was no way anyone would know, no way anyone would be able to inform another about the dangers of the castle. That's the way she wanted it after all. She wouldn't let her kingdom be endangered again. That's what she was thinking about as she stood up and whispered under her breath, speaking in a strange language as the Bow of Light appeared in her hands, the bow's quiver slung across her back.

She was a Queen, and as a queen, she had a duty to her people. If this was what it took...so be it. She knew how to fire a bow after all, this wasn't the first time and it almost certainly wouldn't be the last time. "Alright, time to care of this...by whatever means necessary." She had a determined look as she pushed open the library door, starting down the halls to the tower the ward had been broken at.

**Far Beyond the Great Waste**

Two figures stood in the ruins of what had probably once been a beautiful house, one wearing a hooded robe and one surrounded by an odd sort of aura, making it possibly to look directly at the figure. It didn't matter how hard one tried, they couldn't look directly at that figure. As he spoke, his voice had an odd sound to it, as if the aura was affecting that as well. "We had a deal understand? You get us the sword in time to do the ceremony that releases the Shadow King from his prison, and we bring her back. _We _brought her back. Now, _you, _get us the sword or we will personally take it upon ourselves to kill her again."

"I'm working on it. I...I need more time. I convinced the queen to send a party to investigate the grotto, now it's just a matter of time until we discover the sword...and then...then I'll 'accidentally' break the runes that keep you and the others out of the chamber. Just like I promised...please...please don't hurt her." The figure who had just spoken, the one in the hooded robe was obviously a female, given away by her voice. With the robe on, no other details besides that could be made out.

"If you fail us...if we have to wait seven thousand more years after everything we've done to prepare for his return _now..._we _will_ hurt her. We _will_ hurt you. And after we've had our fun...we'll send you both to a place worse than Hell." As he spoke, he took a step towards the girl and she quickly backed up against the crumbling wall behind her, terrified. The man was silent for a few moments before he spoke again. "Pathetic...I'm sending you back now. Do what you have to...but get us that sword...or else."

The girl started to speak again, started to say something before the shadows around her bent and shifted, surrounding her before she disappeared completely. The figure sighed as it turned to glance around the house. "...we _will not_ accept failure again. We _will_ break you free this time my king." The figure made a motion with it's hands then, vanishing from sight. He and the others had a very busy schedule after all, and getting caught up over that detail was not something they could afford.

They'd waited seven thousand years for these next couple of days, and if everything wasn't perfect by the full moon, they'd be forced to wait another seven thousand years. The seal could only be broken on the anniversary of the curse. Xeria's Curse had succeeded in sealing the Shadow King away...but at a heavy price. She had sealed herself into an eternal sleep, devoting her energy to keeping the Shadow King sealed within the prison that she herself had crafted especially for him. As an aftereffect, it ruined the land that was parallel to the Shadow King's prison, creating the Great Waste.

Now...they finally had a chance. The Light Realm, the Twilight Realm, the Golden Realm, and the Shadow King's Prison were all aligned perfectly...so perfectly that a door would appear on the night of the full moon...and the key just happened to be the Sword of Shadows. With it...the Shadow King could finally return, and take his revenge on the goddess's that had exiled him all those years ago. Without it, everything would be ruined...but they wouldn't fail. Not this time.


End file.
